lbuttery

I thought the idea of using the IRC/IBC codes was to "avoid" the need for engineering etc as my code teacher (and code creator) said numerous times the IRC/IBC is like taking over the counter meds you are self diagnosing - self treating when you need a prescription then you see an architect or engineer Lew

Rod: yes, an HD PRO user should follow both forums Lew

HD PRO users can benefit from following the Chieftalk forum since PRO has many of the manual tools that Premier has Lew

also, if you should decide to buy an older version get X4 or later as X4 introduced anno-sets avoid X3 as it had a library subscription system that was horrid X4 introduced the current library system and is much better it still needs improvements but it works fairly well rental would be a good way to go Lew

Unfortunately, I already donated my X1 dongle to someone hopefully someone can donate theirs to you be aware that starting with X10 CA no longer uses dongles - software lock only I have decided to stay with X9 and so has my partner as we prefer hardware locks We are keeping our SSA active for now so I do have X10 but I have no plans to use it at this time the timing was unfortunate as X10 introduces the plan set feature and it sounds very useful but I am retired and for my personal history preservation projects I don't even use anno-sets so for now X9 meets my needs fine Lew

The dongle will work with any properly licensed software it is illegal to sell the dongle without selling the license also CA allows the dongle to be donated to a licensed user I charged $5 for mailing cost best to verify with CA if the "borrower" is a licensed user before sending the dongle Lew

select the object select copy move to desired floor select paste hold position (either from menu or by icon) Lew

a Chief Premier user will need to have the same version as you do for you to open any plans they send back the Chiefer also needs to set the "Edit in Home ..." flag for you to be able to do any edits to the plan any features that Premier has that Home Designer doesn't have can't be edited since designer is so limited in features you may find it worthwhile to upgrade to HD PRO Lew

there is the Home Designer forum which is dedicated to HD users Chieftalk is dedicated to the more advanced versions tho HD PRO users can benefit from following Chieftalk along with Home Talk Lew

unless the tech has improved vastly I suspect you will find it expensive to have scanned and time consuming to get something worthwhile into Chief ask the vendor to supply a sample scan they have done and see how well it loads into Chief Lew

The "Use Active Layer Set, I WISH CA could fix it so, that wouldn't happen I think CA's OOB anno-sets are meant to be "generic" such that they are set for certain size or fonts etc defaults and used across the various layersets as such From a long ago discussion I got the impression CA didn't think it was necessary to have 40+ anno-sets Caveat: I don't use anno-sets or plan-sets as I retired in 2012 about the time X4 was released with anno-sets and for my limited usage of Chief for my personal historical preservation projects they seem to be "a set too far..." I can see their benefits IF I was still in business - but .... Lew

short answer look under MENU - FILE - IMPORT for file types that your version can import Lew

I learn by doing try modeling your house or the house of a family or friend a house that you have easy access to when that project is done you will be decently proficient with the software but there is always more to learn - you will NEVER be done learning watch the videos - all of them - then watch them again (and again) over time you will notice "tips etc" that you didn't before Lew

I have run out of returns to get back to the way things were Pedro: use "save as" OFTEN - I use it sometimes every 5 minutes or when I finish a task I don't want to repeat add the date/time to the file name and maybe a short description so you can go back to that stage if needed Lew

Larry: as I've heard a thousand times on this forum "its really simple all you gotta do is ..." Lew

yes, download the free Chief X8 client viewer Lew

but you have to close the Layout you are copying from and re-open the Layout you are copying to As Perry stated, it is not necessary to close one layout and then open a second layout IF, you start a second instance of Chief as Perry stated Lew

Andy: this is why I have been advocating for various locks for rooms/walls/floors/areas for over a decade with a lock on Chief should NOT be able to make changes without issuing a warning then getting an ok to proceed the locks feature should be a preference item for those who don't need/want it Lew

With a laser tool, measure each room separately, then the rooms combined through the doorway. Subtract the difference. Rod: I did that as a workaround but still wanted a device to measure wall thickness ... Lew

yes you can determine what version you have etc and then sell for about $500 or so off check with CA about the transfer license fee - usually $50 but can be hundreds and hundreds if its a secondary license etc Lew

on a side note I was always looking for - but never found - a way to measure wall thickness I wanted a device where a sensor was placed on side B and then device on side A press a button and voila !!! no such luck measuring at door frames didn't always work due to moldings some walls don't have doors opening outlets was not desired many times I bought various calipers but never achieved a workable tool Lew

just a caution with bedrooms on the east side I hope they are early risers as the sun will wake them Lew

Robert: if you create a 1" border on your 24 x 36 you drawing space is 22 x 34 50% = 11 x 17 Lew

I am retired and still use Chief for personal modeling of historical buildings that my family owned during the 1800's that were "world-famous" I would love to be doing modeling as a "job" but my health prevents me from meeting deadlines and appointments If I could only do things on my schedule Lew

this is one of the reasons why I always purchased the hardware lock however, starting with X10 the hardware locks are no longer be made I will be staying with X9 for the foreseeable future ... Lew